"Are you sure?" Fury asks me. I feel everyone's gaze burn into me.
"Sure that he's recovering?" I ask. He nods. "Yes, absolutely. We have made progress. It's slow, but it's progress." I say certainly. I have to make it seem like I know what I'm doing. There can't be any wondering. I'm representing Loki to Fury, to the council, and to the Avengers.
"The incident last week suggests that there isn't as much progress as you claim, Miss..." The councilwoman says, asking my surname.
"Just Serendipity," I tell her. "There is progress. Every day I see more of him. He's fighting another consciousness for control, and sometimes he loses. With all due respect, ma'am," I tell her, stern and annoyed. "Kicking someone else out of your head isn't really an exact science."
The holographic woman nods, writing something down.
"Director Fury," She says. "Do you agree with Ms-" She catches herself. "Serendipity's assessment?"
I look at Fury, who hasn't said anything the whole meeting, aside from introductions.
"Yes. Miss Dipity has handled this better than any of my people ever could." He says, not even glancing at me. I smile, my chest swelling with pride. I didn't know until just now how much I needed that reassurance. I'm doing okay. It's nice to hear someone say it, because I'm pretending to know. No one happens to know how the hell to do this. It isn't necessarily surprising, per se, but that doesn't mean it isn't frustrating.
One of the male council members starts interrogating me.
"What exactly is your plan for if he continues to not get a grip on reality?" He asks me, annoyed.
"Well, I'm hoping that-"
"Heck, what's your plan for helping him get a grip on reality in the first place!" He cries, throwing his hands up.
"Currently I'm focusing on helping him sort out memories from-"
"Are you sure that she's the most qualified person for this position?" He asks Fury. "She's just a child!" He says, ignoring me. That is the last straw.
"Will you shut up for one minute, sir, and let me speak?" I ask him, similar to how Fury does. "First off, if he doesn't get a grip, we have already decided to send him back to Asgard for them to contain." I say. He opens his mouth, most likely to yell at me again. I hold up a shushing finger.
"I wasn't done. Second, I am currently working on helping him sort out what memories are real, which ones are altered, which never happened, and what did happen." I tell him, making eye contact with that man and no one else.
"Third, I am the most qualified person for this position due to my previous relationship with Loki, and due to my experience with him as he was exposed to the staff. And fourth," I say, articulating carefully.
"I am not a child. I am old enough to be your great-grandmother's grandmother. I was alive when Marco Polo first visited China, and I narrowly missed meeting Gengis Khan, so if anyone should be treated like a child, it should be me treating you as such." I shout at him. The moment the words leave my mouth I fear I overstepped my bounds. Everyone looks to Fury, wondering what he'll say.
"Hey," He throws his hands up in uninvolvement. "Everything she said is true. It would probably benefit you to be polite to Miss Dipity unless you want to wake up at the bottom of the ocean," Fury suggests, smirking.
The councilman opens his mouth to say something, but no words come out. After a moment, head councilwoman speaks again.
"Very well. The council recognizes Serendipity's capabilities, and will continue to allow her to attempt to aid Loki until such a point that she deems it time for him to return off-world, or we deem that he is too much of a danger to be kept under her care." She declares before ending the call.
I exhale a massive sigh of relief, pleased with myself for surviving my first world security council meeting.
"Congratulations, Miss Dipity," Fury says, walking out dramatically.
As soon as the door closes behind Fury I break into a fit of giggles, jumping around like a small child. Congratulations indeed. I think I deserve to go celebrate. First I should check on Loki. When I went to see him yesterday he was the other still, but I should go visit him for a minute anyways.
I walk out of the meeting room on the Helicarrier and head for lockup once again. As I march through the halls I try to keep my excitement private and make my face stern, marching through the ship. I've found people take me more seriously if I do two things.
Number one, looking serious often traslates to looking scary. If you're good, you can pull off both.
Number two, dress seriously. Heels help a ton because the clicking noise is intimidating, and it makes you taller to stand up against people.
An extra inch or two and an intimidating expression work wonders. Boys are practically jumping out of my way. I make it to lockup, my home at this point, and swipe my card to get in. I put all my weight into swinging the heavy door open and step in. I'm greeted by an unconscious agent.
I close my eyes a groan. Why? I just wanted to go to the beach today. There better only be one. I bend over and take off my heels, slipping my keys and ID card into them silently. Only Nat can fight in heels. Reconsidering leaving my pass to everything unattended, I put it back on and flip it around so that the tag hangs down my back.
I creep around the corners and check for others.
Looks like there's only the one. I beeline to Loki's cell once everything else looks in order. He's inside.
Thank god.
At my panicked face he shrugs and turns back to his book, unbothered. I make a puzzled expression and walk up to the locked door, thinking. On a hunch I stick my hand out to the door. It falls through.
Stercore!
Loki's illusion shimmers away to reveal an empty room. I turn in a quick circle. He's still here somewhere. Abruptly a pair of arms wrap around me, one on my waist, one around my neck. I don't have any water here.
Stupid stupid stupid STUPID!
I throw my head back, my skull jamming into the face of whoever is holding me. It's most likely Loki, but I don't want to assume. Assuming isn't very polite, after all.
He grunts, informing me that it is a He. I tuck myself into a ball, pulling him down with me, and flip him off like Nat taught me. He goes sprawling, and I'm on him again before he could even consider another illusion. I jump onto him and wrap my legs around his neck, spinning myself around so my knees are on the back of his head so he can't throw me off.
Yep, it's Loki.
"Oh, hey babe," I say sarcastically as I scramble to pull off my ID before he gets me off. I wrap it around my hands and spin back around, using my weight to throw him off balance. I fall off, but not before I manage to wrap the ID around his neck and pull it taught, cutting off his oxygen.
After a minute or two, he finally collapses, and I slide off. He's still breathing. I sigh and grab his ankle, dragging him back to the cell, where I find the other guard, who is unconscious as well. I throw Loki back in, pull out the other man, and lock the door.
Then I focus on reviving them. I finally get the one from in the cell awake, although both are breathing, thankfully.
"What the heck happened?" I ask him, fighting back the urge to drown him.
"He..." The agent stops to think. "He said something about me to come play checkers with him," The man says, embarrassed.
I hate stupid people.
"Just this once, I won't drown you or flood your apartment." I say through gritted teeth.
"Your friend is over there," I say, pointing to the agent who was by the door. The first one nods and swallows hard.
"I'm going to leave. How about you don't open the cell this time, ok?" I say, already marching off.
"Oh, I'm gonna ask the Director to come personally relieve you!" I call over my shoulder, sounding cute and excited as I deal out a death sentence. I pick up my keys and shoes, putting everything back where it goes. I grab my phone out of my pocket and text Fury.
Just took care of a disaster in lock up, you should go check it out
I'm going on a little trip, bbl
Tucking it back into my pocket, I smile at the terror those men are about to feel, and continue back to my apartment. Ditching my shoes at the door, I wiggle my sore toes. I chuck my phone and keys and ID at the couch and head to my room as I peel off my now-sweaty shirt.
I ditch my pants for a swim bottom and take my hair down. I go to the pool and stick my leg in the water, just letting myself feel it. As I start to feel the water in the pool, I stretch to feel the water in other places too. I start to feel it for all of the city, and then the state, and then the entire east coast. I stop feeling there, and pick a place near humans. I close my eyes and brace myself for the jolt.
Everything shifts, and suddenly I'm underwater. I let myself sink and inhale the water.
Sweet, sweet salt water. I turn down and swim, crawling across the bottom and feeling the sand, almost rolling around in it.
After a little bit of that, I surface again and orient myself to the humans on shore. I summon a current and push myself towards shore. I hang out a little bit away, just floating on the surface and enjoying the sun like everyone else.
After a bit, a girl comes over to me. She must be around 10 or 11. She walks up to me and suspiciously eyes my scales.
"Where'd you buy your swimsuit?" She asks, swimming around me. I sit up and tread water, excited. I love doing this. I start forming my tail again, already knowing how this'll play out.
"I'll tell you if you don't tell anyone," I whisper to her. She stops, considering.
"Alright..."
I go back onto my back and lay down, spreading out my tail for her.
"Is that a suit??" She asks me. "I went to an aquarium once and they had someone in a suit swimming around, but this looks way better than what she had."
I burst out laughing, and pick off a spare scale for her, wincing slightly as it pops off. I hand it to the girl and her eyes widen in surprise and amazement.
"If you want, I can show you another trick," I say, smiling. Kids are so fun to tell about being a guardian, or at least what they can understand.